“Cowardly”, “unfair” and “a huge slap in the face” – the response from some in the care sector after the prime minister suggested that “too many” care homes didn’t follow procedures during the height of the pandemic.

We now know that more than 20,000 care home residents died as a result of coronavirus, almost half of all deaths in the UK.

The Prime Minister’s spokesperson said he was not blaming care workers – but that the care sector had done a “brilliant job under very difficult circumstances”.

PM refuses to apologise after appearing to blame care homes for way they handled residents